Review: Brown-Eyed Girl (Travis Family #4) by Lisa Kleypas

Brown-Eyed Girl
(Travis Family #4) 

by Lisa Kleypas

August 11, 2015

304 pages

Goodreads  Indigo

Goodreads Summary:

Wedding planner Avery Crosslin may be a rising star in Houston society, but she doesn't believe in love--at least not for herself. When she meets wealthy bachelor Joe Travis and mistakes him for a wedding photographer, she has no intention of letting him sweep her off her feet. But Joe is a man who goes after what he wants, and Avery can't resist the temptation of a sexy southern charmer and a hot summer evening.

After a one night stand, however, Avery is determined to keep it from happening again. A man like Joe can only mean trouble for a woman like her, and she can't afford distractions. She's been hired to plan the wedding of the year--a make-or-break event.

But complications start piling up fast, putting the wedding in jeopardy, especially when shocking secrets of the bride come to light. And as Joe makes it clear that he's not going to give up easily, Avery is forced to confront the insecurities and beliefs that stem from a past she would do anything to forget.

The situation reaches a breaking point, and Avery faces the toughest choice of her life. Only by putting her career on the line and risking everything--including her well-guarded heart--will she find out what matters most.

 

Review

I didn't know Brown-Eyed Girl was part of a series until I received a copy (bad me for not checking first) but that in no way affected my enjoyment of the book. At first, I was a little afraid I wouldn't be able to catch on with the characters and their back stories but thankfully Kleypas smoothly incorporates a quick run through of each character and their relationships to one another. I seriously loved seeing how tight-knit the Travis family was.

 

Avery is independent in a I-don't-need-a-man way. I liked her at the beginning because of her hardworking attitude. She meets Joe and for  once in her life, she's bold and goes for it. Then just as suddenly she shrinks back from him which I didn't mind given her past traumatic experience, getting jilted at the altar. However, I did not think it was fine for her to just make assumptions. In the case of Joe pursuing her, she just automatically thinks he's a player and makes her decisions based that. She lets her insecurity take control of herself which was no good. She even went as far as asking Joe to do something for her at one point which I found to be very selfish. It was maddening but she does redeem herself in several honest ways.

I don't know if anyone who's read the book would feel the same way but Joe's repeated usage of the word 'honey' really got on my nerves. Is this suppose to sound like an endearing term? Because I just wasn't feeling it. Every time Joe used it on Avery I wanted to roll my eyes. The fact that he started calling her that only knowing her for a few days didn't help. That's my one personal complaint about him because besides that, Joe was a total sweetheart. He was caring, patient and always gave it to Avery straight. If it's not going to work out, he tells her with no false pretenses. He couldn't have been more understanding.

The emphasis on family in Brown-Eyed Girl was everything. Seeing Avery and Sophia's sisterly bond, the way they defended and encouraged each other, put a big smile on my face. There's also the Travis family's solid rapport. Their endless banter and tireless support of one another would make any one envious. These things really tugged at my heart and I'm so happy that I have a family equally supportive and beautiful as they are :)
 

The synopsis is a bit misleading since the majority of the "drama" basically took place in the last three chapters. With Avery planning "the" wedding of the year, we really get a good glimpse of how twisted high society can be. Some of the things said were pretty unfathomable and had me seriously fuming. It's ugly and I would never want to be a part of something like that. Avery did the right thing.

All in all, Brown-Eyed Girl turned out to be entertaining. I surprisingly enjoyed Sophia and Steven's quibbles a lot! If only there was more Joe and a little less Avery then it would've been perfect. But don't hesitate to give this book or even this series a try because it is quite good ;)

*I received an ARC of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinion are my own and not affected in any way.